Cat owners in the Telford area have been placed on alert by RSPCA officers following the deaths of four animals due to suspected anti-freeze or rat poisoning.

Andy Robbins, spokesman for the RSPCA, said cats could suffer serious problems or die after ingesting the “smallest amounts” of some substances.

He made the comments after four cats from the same family died two weeks ago. It is believed they all ingested anti-freeze or rat poison.

There have also been other reports of suspected poisonings in the borough in recent months.

Mr Robbins said: “We are deeply concerned and extremely saddened by the spate of suspected anti-freeze poisonings of cats in the Telford area lately. Ingesting just the smallest amounts of some substances can lead to kidney failure and death.

“We would like to remind owners that unintentional poisonings can happen. But owners should take care and be vigilant when using anti-freeze, making sure it is kept in clearly labelled, robust, sealed containers, away from pets and their environment. Anti-freeze should always be disposed of safely and responsibly.

“If you suspect that your cat has been poisoned you must take it to a vet immediately. If possible, you should take a sample of what the cat has eaten or drunk, or the container.”

Signs of anti-freeze poisoning can be seen anything from 30 minutes after a cat has ingested the chemical, although it can be two or three days before any signs of kidney failure become visible.

Other signs of anti-freeze poisoning can include symptoms such as vomiting, depression, appearing unco-ordinated, seizures, difficulty breathing, increased thirst and increased urination.

One Shropshire Star reader from Leegomery, who wished to remain anonymous, is also warning Telford residents to be extra cautious with their pets and asked them to be on their guard after two of her cats were poisoned within weeks of each other.

Due to this the woman has since had to rehome her two cats, which she says has greatly upset herself and her daughter.

The RSPCA say that in 2012 they took 14 calls about anti-freeze poisoning in Shropshire, while in 2013 they took six and so far in 2014 they have again taken six calls.

It has launched an investigation and said it would prosecute anyone responsible. Poisoning a cat deliberately is a criminal offence and under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, the maximum penalty is up to six months imprisonment or a fine of up to £20,000.

Anyone with information should contact the RSPCA’s national cruelty line on 0300 1234 999.

Pet Wireless, the team behind Tailio, the world’s first mobile app and Wi-Fi enabled device that turns a cat’s litter box into a smart monitoring system, are thrilled to announce that they have doubled their Kickstarter goal, raising $60k in just 4 days. Pet Wireless reached their funding goal of $30k in only eight hours.

Tailio has resonated with cat lovers around the globe, keen to get their paws on the latest in pet health monitoring technology. The device sits neatly under a cat’s litter box, and allows an owner to receive alerts and information on their cat’s well-being via a smartphone app. Its unique, non-invasive design allows the owner access to their cat’s details without discomfort to the cat, or requiring the cat to keep still for weighing. The monitoring process is natural and unobtrusive and enables pet families to stay closer to their cats from anywhere.

“We are profoundly grateful for the wonderful Kickstarter community for allowing Tailio to achieve funding in such a short space of time,” said Pet Wireless founder Alex Treiner. “We want to give back to the community, so today we’re announcing new funding stretch goals that will enable us to enhance Tailio with additional options and features if reached by the end of our campaign.”

The stretch goals for Tailio are set at $100k and $150k, and promise more color options for the device, and a new feature in the mobile app. The Tailio device is currently slated to ship in a neutral white color, but upon reaching $150k in funding, the device will also be made available in additional colors that the Kickstarter community will help select. In addition, backers will receive a new feature in the mobile app that enables them to find local veterinary services based on their location if the project hits $150k.

“When a health issue arises, getting your cat proper medical care as soon as possible is critical to the outcome,” said Dr. Mark Goldstein, DVM and former President of the San Diego Human Society. “A common urgent care crisis for cats is an urinary blockage, which can become life threatening in males in just 24-48 hours. Tailio will not only help owners to detect early signs of health issues such as feline lower urinary tract disease, but with the new feature to find local vet services, will also help owners quickly know where to take their cat for medical care.”

Tailio collects data on a cat’s litter box visits and behavior, their weight and waste, and creates a ‘Pawprint’, an individual profile of physiology and behavior that is unique to each cat, even in multiple cat homes. The Pawprint serves as a baseline for Tailio, so it can analyze regular patterns and notify owners if something is out of the ordinary. Pet Wireless worked with veterinarians to create a solution that would enable cat owners to be made aware of early signs of health issues and help with the care of their cats.

Treiner also commented, “As someone who learned of their cat’s illness too late, it’s comforting to know that others recognize the importance of being able to identify problems with their pet early on. The response to Tailio has been amazing, and being able to bring a product to market that we know will be of great benefit to pet families is a wonderful feeling, and we hope this news will continue to be shared among friends and family!”

Tailio is still available to back on Kickstarter, with early bird pledge levels starting at $99.

Pet Wireless is a start-up based in San Diego, CA. Dedicated to using technology to improve the lives of pets and their families, Pet Wireless develops pet health monitoring solutions that enable pet owners to make informed decisions about their pets’ care.

New York Cat Cafe Opens In December

A cat café is opening on December 15 in New York City. Meow Parlour, located at 46 Hester St., offers cat lovers the chance to pet the cats in the café. All of the cats, which are from KittyKind, are adoptable. The café can accommodate up to 12 cats and 30 people.

According to the New York Daily News, the café is connected to a patisserie where clients can get goods such as Blue Bottle Coffee, macarons, and baked goods. All the cats in the cafe will come from a rescue center and visitors can bring their food into the cat room. However, cats can’t be brought into the dining area. Meow Parlour also caters to guests who want to hold their private events in the cafe.

Based on statistics the rate of pet ownership in New York City is 60 percent less than those in other areas. There are about 500,000 dogs and cats in the city, which is equivalent to one dog or cat for every three households, GMA Network reports.

However, this doesn’t mean that people living in New York don’t love pets as much as people living in other states. The statistics are lower, as pet ownership is quite difficult in small living quarters. In addition, plenty of apartment buildings in New York do not allow pets.

Cat cafes were first popularized in Japan, and the fad has caught on in different countries around the world. Earlier this month, Inquisitr reported about the first permanent cat café in the U.S., which is located in Oakland. The café proved to be a success in the first few weeks.

Cat lovers must call in for reservations to be able to secure a spot in Meow Parlour. Clients will be charged $4 per half hour that they spend with the lovable felines.

Other cat cafes will soon open in other locations such as Portland, Los Angeles, Denver, and Seattle.

Unlike dogs, cats are at best semi-domesticated—and we love them for that.

hlehto/Flickr

Dog lovers will find it baffling that cats are the world’s most popular pet. After all, they’re passive-aggressive, emotionally unavailable, and known for their chilly independence—traits that at most qualify felines for the role of “man’s best frenemy.”

It turns out, though, there’s an evolutionary reason for this tense relationship. That is, cats are in many ways still wild.

“Cats, unlike dogs, are really only semi-domesticated,” says Wes Warren, professor of genetics Washington University and co-author of the first complete mapping (paywall) of the house cat genome—specifically, that of an Abyssinian named Cinnamon.

Comparing the DNA differences between house cats and wild cats, Warren and his colleagues found that where the genes of domesticated kitties and wild cats diverge has to do with fur patterns, grace, and docility. The latter are the genes that influence behaviors such as reward-seeking and response to fear.

The context for this split is telling. The divergence likely began some 9,000 years ago, after humans had made the shift to agriculture. Drawn to the teeming rodent populations that gathered during grain harvests, wild cats began interacting with humans. And because cats kept rodents in check, the researchers hypothesize, humans likely encouraged them to stay by offering them food scraps as a reward. These early farmers eventually kept cats that stuck around.

“Selection for docility, as a result of becoming accustomed to humans for food rewards,” write the researchers, “was most likely the major force that altered the first domesticated cat genomes.” In other words, the ones that stuck around were the cats with those genes that encouraged interaction with humans, thereby making those traits prevalent in what became the global domestic cat population.

Not only are cats still mostly wild, but they also pretty much tamed themselves.

As intriguing, though, is what didn’t change in human-friendly cats during those nine millennia. House cats still have the broadest hearing range among carnivores, which allows them to detect their prey’s movement. They also retain their night-vision abilities and the ability to digest high-protein, high-fat diets. This implies that, unlike those of dogs, their genes haven’t evolved to make cats dependent on humans for food.

This indicates only a modest influence of domestication on cat genes, compared with dogs, say the researchers. In fact, according to recent research on canine genomes, dogs became man’s best friend back when humans were still hunting and gathering—between 11,000 and 16,000 years ago. Their typically more omnivorous diets evolved as human lifestyle shifted toward agrarian living.

So why have kitties stayed wilder? The genome-mappers theorize it’s because house cat populations have continued to interbreed with wild cats. Also, humans’ “cat fancy”—meaning, our fanaticism about creating weird cat breeds—only began in the last 200 or so years.

They came for the mice, stayed for the food scraps, and whenever it suited, kept cuddly with the cats from the other side of the granary. In other words, not only are cats still mostly wild, but they also pretty much tamed themselves. Maybe that means humans are “cats’ best friend.”

HARRISONBURG, Va. (WHSV)– The BISSELL Pet Foundation™, supported in part by BISSELL Homecare, Inc., will award $10,000 to Cat’s Cradle of the Shenandoah Valley to support their spay/neuter efforts. Funds will provide spay/neuter surgeries for 200 foster and community cats.

“With literally millions of homeless pets euthanized every year in the U.S., we focus on funding programs that will do the most to change this heartbreaking outcome,” explains Cathy BISSELL, Founder of the BISSELL Pet Foundation. “It brings me and my team so much joy to know we are helping to save the lives of thousands of animals through these grant awards.”

Established in 2011 by Cathy Bissell, a devoted pet lover and advocate, the BISSELL Pet Foundation addresses the growing problem of displaced, unwanted and homeless pets by providing assistance to shelter and rescue programs, and by creating awareness about pet overpopulation, in the hopes of finding every pet a loving home.

“We are very grateful to the BISSELL Pet Foundation for a generous grant that will support our community owned cat spay/neuter program, as well as our foster/adoption program” said Suzanne Auckerman, Cat’s Cradle of the Shenandoah Valley Executive Director. “Cat’s Cradle works very hard to reduce intake and euthanasia at our regional shelters by offering assistance to pet owners who need help to spay or neuter their cats, and by rescuing, fostering, and adopting out shelter animals. This grant will be a big help to us as we work with pet owners and shelters to reduce pet overpopulation and find homes for adoptable cats and kittens.”

HARRISONBURG, Va. (WHSV)– The BISSELL Pet Foundation™, supported in part by BISSELL Homecare, Inc., will award $10,000 to Cat’s Cradle of the Shenandoah Valley to support their spay/neuter efforts. Funds will provide spay/neuter surgeries for 200 foster and community cats.

“With literally millions of homeless pets euthanized every year in the U.S., we focus on funding programs that will do the most to change this heartbreaking outcome,” explains Cathy BISSELL, Founder of the BISSELL Pet Foundation. “It brings me and my team so much joy to know we are helping to save the lives of thousands of animals through these grant awards.”

Established in 2011 by Cathy Bissell, a devoted pet lover and advocate, the BISSELL Pet Foundation addresses the growing problem of displaced, unwanted and homeless pets by providing assistance to shelter and rescue programs, and by creating awareness about pet overpopulation, in the hopes of finding every pet a loving home.

“We are very grateful to the BISSELL Pet Foundation for a generous grant that will support our community owned cat spay/neuter program, as well as our foster/adoption program” said Suzanne Auckerman, Cat’s Cradle of the Shenandoah Valley Executive Director. “Cat’s Cradle works very hard to reduce intake and euthanasia at our regional shelters by offering assistance to pet owners who need help to spay or neuter their cats, and by rescuing, fostering, and adopting out shelter animals. This grant will be a big help to us as we work with pet owners and shelters to reduce pet overpopulation and find homes for adoptable cats and kittens.”

Washington (AFP) – A mild manner and a fondness for fatty treats like fish or meat scraps may have helped cats evolve into the tame yet independent-minded pets they are today, researchers said Monday.

After that, it was people’s preference for cats with certain appearances, like white paws, that played a key role in winnowing down the 38 species known today, said a study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

“Using advanced genome sequencing technology, we were able to shed light on the genetic signatures of cats’ unique biology and survival skills,” said Wes Warren, associate professor of genetics at the Washington University School of Medicine.

Domestic cats “only recently split off from wild cats, and some even still breed with their wild relatives. So we were surprised to find DNA evidence of their domestication,” he added.

By comparing domestic cat genes to other cat breeds, as well as wildcats and other mammals, certain differences stood out.

For instance, tigers and domestic cats each have the uncanny physical ability to eat lots of fatty acids without the resulting heart disease and cholesterol that such a diet would have on humans.

Genetic selection for appearance was also evident, particularly in recent generations.

“Unlike many other domesticated mammals bred for food, herding, hunting or security, most of the 30–40 cat breeds originated recently, within the past 150 years, largely due to selection for aesthetic rather than functional traits,” said the study.

For instance, the Birman cat breed likely developed its characteristic white paws because humans chose to breed cats that looked the same.

In the random population of cats, the genes that lead to the gloving pattern are only seen in about 10 percent of felines.

– Rodent killers –

About 600 million cats exist on Earth. The earliest archeological evidence of cats living with people dates back 9,500 years to the Mediterranean island of Cyprus.

Archeological evidence of cats as pets has also been found 5,000 years ago in central China.

Cats are believed to have worked their way into humans’ everyday lives during agricultural periods in history, when their work as killers of rodents and vermin would have been prized.

“Most cats were likely bred for rodent control, and only later for pigmentation,” said study co-author Michael Montague, in an email to AFP.

“In a sense, tameness would need to be one of the initial behavioral differences between wildcats and domestic cats and perhaps the ultimate driver of domestication.”

Four cats belonging to a single family in Telford have been killed by a suspected deliberate act of poisoning, the RSPCA warned today.

It is believed they were fed either antifreeze or rat poison in the latest attack of its kind.

The RSPCA today launched an investigation and said it would prosecute anyone responsible for poisoning animals.

Owner Mark Selley, from Telford, said he took the cats to the vets after noticing they were behaving strangely but was told there was nothing that could be done to save them.

Mr Selley, of Butchery Grove in Oakengates, said the four cats, Chester, 12, Arthur, 10, Amy, nine, and 12-month-old Betsy, were part of the family and he and wife Elaine, 60, had been left devastated.

“We first noticed there was something wrong when they came in for their tea on Sunday,” Mr Selley said.

“All of a sudden they started staggering all over the place, like they had been on the beer.

“It just got worse from there, it was horrendous having to watch them. As the day went on it got worse and when they started having seizures we knew we had to get them to the vets, but sadly it was too late.

“The vet said they had been poisoned by either antifreeze or rat poison.”

Poisoning cats is a criminal offence under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. The maximum penalty for anyone found guilty is up to six months in prison or a fine up to a maximum of £20,000.

Mark Selley, who works for Forbo in Halesfield, said that all cat owners should take extra care during the winter months, when the use of antifreeze increases.

The 52-year-old said: “We are devastated, they were part of the family. You hope that there isn’t someone out there doing this deliberately, but I would urge people around here to keep a close eye on their cats just in case.”

It is not the first time families have lost cats as a result of poisoning in Shropshire. Back in 2012, police and RSPCA officials launched an investigation after eight cats were found dead in Shrewsbury in just two weeks. And in the same year, seven cats died in Telford over a similar two-week period after being poisoned with antifreeze.

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A warning was issued by the RSPCA at the time to residents not to add the chemical to water features or ponds. It was feared pets could be drinking the water.

RSPCA inspector Chris Dunbar said at the time: “The charity hopes that by warning the public of the animals’ unexpected deaths it may serve as a warning to other cat owners to report anything suspicious.

“People should not put antifreeze in water features in gardens as it can have devastating consequences for cats and other wild animals. If using antifreeze in the car the public are asked to please clean it up if any is spilled and to ensure that it is stored safely and securely.

“If you suspect that your cat has been poisoned you must take it to a vet immediately. If possible, you should take a sample of what the cat has consumed, or the container.”

Anyone who suspects an animal has been intentionally poisoned should call the RSPCA on 0300 123 4999.

The town’s branch of Pets Corner are holding a micro chipping day from 10.30am on Sunday at Country Homes and Gardens in Shepreth.

Royston Pets Corner manager, Abby Young, said: “We feel that it is important for pets to be micro chipped, for safety and identification purposes. “Not only that but if you have a pesky neighbourhood cat that terrorises your pet or comes into your home, having your cat micro chipped and using a complementary cat flap, will mean that no other kitties can enter your home.

Lucy Ross, head of training at Pets Corner, said: “From April 2016, it will be a legal requirement for all dogs and cats in the UK to be micro chipped.

“Micro chipping is an efficient and irreversible means of identification that can be carried out by our qualified staff in store or by your veterinary practice. A tiny microchip is injected under the skin at the back of the neck, in a simple and quick procedure.”